Fusarium wilt of tomatoes is a disease that is easier to prevent than treat

Many gardeners, growing tomatoes in greenhouses or in the open ground on private plots, are faced with the fact that the leaves are twisted along the entire height of the plants, and the lower ones turn yellow and die. Seeing such a picture, some decide that this is a lack of food, others presume the action of pests, and others - various diseases. Everyone is trying to do something to not lose the harvest. In such a situation it is important to establish the cause, and not spray it with what is at hand, hoping that the used drug will fix everything.

Recently, fusarium wilting of tomatoes is widespread. The photos presented in the article show how the results of the action of pathogenic fungi of the genus Fusarium, which are the causative agents of this disease, look. On the cut of the diseased plant, near the root, a dark ring can be clearly seen. Sometimes a light gray or white fluffy coating appears at the base of the stem.

Formerly, fusarium wilting of tomatoes was observed only in areas with hot summers, and now it is also manifested in temperate zones, as in these places the conditions for its development are increasingly created.

Sources and vectors of the disease are infected seeds, soil and perennial grasses. Spores of the fungus - the causative agent of the disease - persist for a long time in the soil and on the remains of dead plants. If the immunity of plants is normal, then the disease is not manifested. But unfavorable conditions and stressful situations (sudden changes in humidity and soil and air temperatures, excessive moisture, frost, lack of soil nutrition, etc.) contribute to the development of a disease, such as fusarial wilting of tomatoes.

The result of growing under stressful conditions is the penetration of previously noted pathogenic fungi into the root system, and from it into the adjacent part of the tomato stem. Spreading along the vascular system, the fungus affects not only the stems, but also the fruits. At the same time, the tops of plants wilt, the leaves become flabby and turn yellow, wither, and then wither. In some cases, general depression of plants can be observed with the formation of small fruits. The weakened plants subsequently infect bacteriosis, and they perish.

Fusarium wilt of tomatoes can manifest in any phase of development. On shoots, it is accompanied by root and root rot. The seedlings grown up to the cotyledon phase begin to fade. It happens that apparently healthy tomatoes have a latent infection. In this form, the symptoms will manifest themselves at later stages of development. If the seedlings were healthy, and during the growing season, signs of the disease showed, then it can be assumed that the soil is infected.

Before sowing seeds, the soil mixture should be decontaminated. To do this, you need to use the biopreparation Trichodermin. In a box the size of 30x50 it is necessary to make only 4 g to protect the seedlings from such a disease as fusarium wilt of tomatoes. Treatment at any stage will be ineffective, and prevention is always effective.

To prevent the disease during the vegetative period, the plants should be poured 4 times a season with a solution of this preparation diluted in a ratio of 7 g of powder to 2 l of water. 500 ml of the prepared solution is required to be poured into each plant. In addition, tomatoes can be sprayed on leaves with the preparation "Falcon" in a concentration of 1 mg per 3.3 liters of water.

Fusarious wilting of tomatoes is a fungal disease, with which it is almost impossible to fight, and it is not difficult to prevent it. Do you want to get good harvests - do not be lazy to carry out preventive measures.